Arbor Day should be about growing trees, not just planting them | Opinion
Updated 10:17 PM;
Today 10:17 PM
A forested plot in Thailand’s Doi Suthep Pui National Park, formerly burnt over, after 12 years of restoration. Arbor Day is Friday. (Forru/Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
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For 149 years, Americans have marked Arbor Day on the last Friday in April by planting trees.
Now business leaders, politicians, YouTubers and celebrities are calling for the planting of millions, billions or even trillions of trees to slow climate change.
As ecologists who study forestrestoration, we know that trees store carbon, provide habitat for animals and plants, prevent erosion and create shade in cities. But as we have explained elsewhere in detail, planting trees is not a silver bullet for solving complex environmental and social problems. And for trees to produce benefits, they need to be planted correctly – which often is not the case.
For 149 years, Americans have marked Arbor Day on the last Friday in April by planting trees.
Now business leaders, politicians, YouTubers and celebrities are calling for the planting of millions, billions or even trillions of trees to slow climate change.
As ecologists who study forestrestoration, we know that trees store carbon, provide habitat for animals and plants, prevent erosion and create shade in cities. But as we have explained elsewhere in detail, planting trees is not a silver bullet for solving complex environmental and social problems. And for trees to produce benefits, they need to be planted correctly – which often is not the case.